Speeches

Mr President, right now, we are living some really hard‑earned lessons. For decades, we built our economy based on fossil fuels when we should have known better. We should have known better when Russia invaded Crimea and cut the gas flows. We should have known better, changed our tax system and phased out oil instead of hoping for Iran to keep the Hormuz Strait open. We should have known better than to let the US threaten us to comply in order for them not to cut our gas supply. We were wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong. We were wrong on getting dependent on Russia, wrong on getting dependent on the Middle East and wrong on getting dependent on the US. So, my question is to the governments across Europe: how dare you challenge the EU climate policies when that is the only way, the only path to get rid out of these harmful dependencies? When will Europe learn?

Mr President, I agree with President Macron. The energy transition is too slow, the pathway towards new mines is too slow, reducing dependency on fossil fuels is too slow, building Europe's competitiveness is too slow. And one of the reasons is because of the lack of predictability that we are creating in this House. The political uncertainty is actually influencing our businesses. But second of all, it is also because of costly, long and complicated overdue permitting processes. Waiting several years for a 'no' is not a reality that we should accept. Not when we know that investments are needed to create change and growth that we very much need in Europe right now. So to all of you speaking and listening here today, as rapporteur for the Commission proposal on speeding up environmental assessments, this is my invitation to you: assessments that take too long, we can solve that. Regulatory overlaps, we can solve it. Our own unclear rules, we can solve that too. Now we have the chance to do something about it, we should take it. I am ready to do the job, the question is: are you?

Mr President, colleagues, we are facing a very serious situation. The war in Iran is sending shockwaves into our energy system, causing prices to soar, and we need to be prepared. The petroleum populism isn't working. Our best way to prepare is finally phasing out fossil fuels for real. But we are not delivering. Renewable energy is taxed the same way as fossil energy in this Union. Biofuels have the same tax as diesel, and biogas is treated the same way as natural gas. This is not a bug – it's a feature in the system that we built. I am ashamed that the Energy Tax Directive is designed to lock us into our fossil fuel dependencies – totally irresponsible and the opposite of what we need to do right now. So thank you, Commission, for raising this issue, but it is now up to the Member States to finally do something about the energy tax issues. The farmers in the EU want to do more. The Swedish farmers are ready to make a difference. But for doing that, they need a real market for biofuels. And we need to stop protecting the interests of the fossil fuel industry once and for all.

But what your side of the House, this part of the House, needs to understand is it's the dependency on coal, oil and gas that led us here. That's why we are in the situation where we are today. That's why the prices are skyrocketing. Coal will not be a nice teddy bear you can go to whenever you have a problem. It is the actual problem. Coal, oil and gas are the main cause of the energy price problem that we are facing today.

So do I understand you correctly that we are in a situation where the oil and gas prices are skyrocketing because of the war in Iran, the situation in the Middle East, and what you want to do is take all of the climate policies that are to take us out of these dependencies on fossil fuel, remove them, and then continue using oil, gas and coal? How will that lower energy prices for European consumers? It's the dependency on oil, gas and coal that makes energy prices skyrocket at the moment. I don't understand the logic here.

Mr President, colleagues, as we are having this debate now, there is a banner outside of this room sponsored by a Member of this House from the ECR that is really attacking women's rights to their own body. I demand ...

Mr President, a few days ago, the Olympic fire was lit in Milan. The same night, Russia fired 447 missiles and drones towards energy facilities in Ukraine. The halls in Italy where curling, hockey and figure skating will take place are about -1 to -5°C. The temperature in Ukraine has dropped to under -21°C in the past days. When you are watching the Olympic Games in your nice, warm living room, 1 400 apartments in Kyiv are still without heating. When the opening ceremony of the Olympics echoes messages about peace, it is evident that Vladimir Putin is not listening. Energy can be weaponised, energy is being weaponised. My message is: don't let Putin use energy as a weapon in this war against Ukraine. To all of the EU members: make the Ukraine Energy Support Fund work. Contribute now to help Ukraine. And to all of the power plant workers across Ukraine: you are also heroes, you are all heroes in this war.

Interesting thing about the Sweden Democrats. You seem almost proud that you want to dismantle Sweden's climate policy and that we miss all emissions targets. You do not want to reduce Sweden's emissions. You are voting against the EU's climate targets and all climate legislation presented in Fit for 55, and you do not want us to go to the COP and negotiate at global level. So explain to me, Beatrice, how you and the Sweden Democrats are different from all the other climate deniers that we have heard here in the house today, and how you want to reduce emissions, because I really have not understood that.

Mr President, the EU is not fighting fossil fuels themselves, but the emissions they produce. That was what Ursula von der Leyen said last week. I am sorry, honourable President, but I do not agree. We are fighting fossil fuels. They are the reason for global warming and the climate crisis that we are in, and it is outrageous to state otherwise. More than 80 % of the world energy and 68 % of the energy in the European Union is still fossil. Last week in Belém was a disappointment, but we, team EU, have homework to be doing and a reason to be self-critical. We needed a good deal. 10 years after the Paris Agreement and what did we get instead? I am sorry Commissioner, but I think the support for the fossil fuel roadmap was too weak and we were disorganised in the European Union at the table of the COP. Why else would EU countries sign different proposals at different times? In the first call to end the era of fossil fuels, Italy and Poland were missing. In the second call in the coalition of the willing, we are missing 18 countries. Where are Sweden? Where are Germany? There are so many Member States missing. We are completely disorganised. If the Council had not focused only on our own 2040 target, maybe we could have prepared better for the most important climate conference since 2015. So, I am disappointed, but I am most disappointed with our climate ministers and with the Commission President. Why would Ursula von der Leyen make such a statement, undermining the negotiations on the spot in Belém at the G20? That is, for me, completely not understandable. We elected von der Leyen with a promise to deliver on climate. I am still waiting for that promise to be delivered, and the next meeting in Colombia in April would be a good opportunity for our Commission President to do so.

Madam President, where is the climate leadership? I am genuinely worried that the Paris Agreement would not be possible today – the climate leadership has disappeared. Our next climate conference is approaching, but the EU is still empty handed. Where is our climate target? Where is our contribution to the global COP agenda? And at the same time, country after country failed to reach their climate goals, and they're all pretending that it's not a big deal. But the targets of Sweden, of Denmark, of France, Romania, Bulgaria and Germany, they sum up to the EU target and the EU target is aligned according to the Paris Agreement. So when your country fails on your national targets, you are failing on the EU target and you are betraying the Paris Agreement. I am going to Brazil with a clear message to Ulf Kristersson and the other heads of state and government who avoid responsibility: it's time to wake up. It is time to show leadership and show that you are supporting the Paris Agreement. And to you, Hoekstra, good luck in Belém. And it does not make sense that the global stocktake only takes place every fifth year. This House demands more frequent follow-up. Good luck with that.

Mr President, thank you very much. Forests offer recreation. They store carbon, protect biodiversity and enable rural communities to live and develop. National experts are those who know forests best and must be at the heart of EU policies affecting forests. Because the conditions vary from Lapland to the Alps, between Finland and Spain, it is precisely this local expertise that is crucial. For decades, the Standing Forestry Committee has served as an important link between Member States and the European Commission. And as we modernise it, we must ensure that this cooperation, and the spirit of cooperation, lives on. I therefore hope that you will support this proposal and vote to maintain and preserve this important cooperation that puts local expertise and national experts at the heart of EU work and EU forest policy.

Mr President, today our national forest monitoring systems speak different languages. With this law, we have an opportunity to build a system that would be able to translate those languages into a common European one, a language that could help us understand why forest fires grow more common, why bark beetle attacks become more severe, to help and assist our forest owners. The Commission proposal was not perfect, but this was a perfect opportunity to guarantee the involvement of the Member States, to put the Member State authorities in the centre, and to ensure true subsidiarity in the field of forests – values that many of you in this side of the House (speaker gestures to the right of the House) say that you cherish. I will warn you, because if this law is rejected, information will still be used, but without the right safeguards, without any way for the Member States to ensure that the data is used correctly. Don't distrust information, colleagues, don't make this vote a lost opportunity to strengthen the Member States' role in forest-related policies.

Mr President, I've got a message for you, the climate deniers and the climate delayers of this House – you who love to blame electric vehicles for everything. You blame them for higher energy prices and lack of competitiveness. Well, guess what? You are the ones to blame for the higher energy prices and the lack of competitiveness. You are so stubborn, but the logic isn't there. First, you say it isn't true. Then science comes and proves you wrong. Then you say if we can't fix it, there's no technical solution. Then industry comes and gives you the technology and shows that it's possible. Then you say it costs too much, it will be too expensive. Then businesses come and show you the business case. They show you that it's done and it's possible, and it is feasible. Then you say it's too risky. But you know what? You are the ones hesitating. You are the ones creating this risk for industry when you're drawing back on policy after policy. Your dependence on dirty energy, your refusal to let go of all the fossil energy – that's what's driving up prices and that's what's causing us lack of competitiveness.

Mr President, thank you very much. Today I want to talk directly to you, all Swedish farmers. It's a long way from your yards here to Brussels and Strasbourg. But the fact is, I hear you all the way here. Tomorrow we will vote on two simplification packages that are designed just for you, to make life easier at home on the farms. But we in the policy also do not make it easy for you, because even before these packages come into force, the European Commission has presented a completely new agricultural policy for 2027. That's the point now. For in this agricultural policy, the one that will become the new EU agricultural policy and CAP, there are keys to increase profitability, prevent natural disasters, solve labour shortages and perhaps still worry about who is going to take over the farm when you at home are going to retire in a well-deserved retirement. We in the Centre Party are prepared to roll up our sleeves and do the work. Today we are voting in favour of simplifying the rules. Tomorrow we will deal with the next generation of agricultural policy.

Mr President, here we go again. We have had another summer with a record of forest and wildfires: almost 1 million hectares have burned this year. At the same time, cities like Stockholm have faced severe water shortages. And this week, more regions in Sweden are hit by devastating floods. New studies from this summer also shows that the Gulf Stream might collapse within our lifetime. Climate change is here and now, but where is the political response? Where is the climate leadership? What are we doing in this House? We can't even agree on a 2040 target – a new climate target in between two existing targets. We don't even have the leadership for that. So I'm turning to you, EPP, the conservative group of this House: my very cynical conclusion is that with the current climate leadership, the Paris Agreement would not be possible today. We do not have enough leadership. But I am looking to you, EPP. You can change this. Please show us leadership. Don't hesitate. Don't join forces with the climate sceptics. You say it's expensive. But this change – this climate change – that is what will be expensive and that is what will ruin us. Please show us the leadership we need.

Madam President, thank you very much. We need to talk about PFAS, these perpetual chemicals, created by humans and completely impossible to break down – the very definition of unsustainable. They are everywhere: in the water we drink, in the air we breathe and in the products we consume. Although we know how harmful they are to humans and animals and that they accumulate in nature, this Parliament seems completely incapable of doing anything about the problem. We know that up to 60% of our watercourses, 30% of our lakes and an increasing number of food products contain PFAS. All of you in here and probably all of you listening have most likely PFAS in your blood. The presentation of a report encouraging the phasing out of PFAS is a disgrace. We need to be clear: We need a ban on perpetual chemicals and we need it now if it is to be of any use. By not acting, we choose to continue this self-harm. We need to act now.

Mr President, I would like to thank you. The fact that these issues are being discussed today is both welcome and important. But let's be honest: What our oceans need is not more discussions and conversations. We need to act. In the Baltic Sea, we can see how environmental degradation continues, how our marine ecosystems are being destroyed and how fish stocks are close to collapse completely. This can't go on. We need a strong maritime pact that prioritises the environment and a sustainable blue economy, rather than emissions and large-scale industrial fishing. Because I know that progress can be reversed, but then the European Maritime Pact needs to be concrete and lead to clear results for the environment. We can see that our ecosystems can recover and we can protect small-scale fishing. And we can stop the pollution that is released into our oceans. We can do all of this, but we need to act now.

Mr President, thank you very much. Dear Commissioner for Agriculture, Where's the profit? The vision for European agriculture talks about income, income and income. But what European farmers need is profit, profit, profit. I am disappointed that we are setting the bar so low, because if agriculture is the backbone of society, food is its heart. At a time when farmers across Europe are sounding the alarm that the economy is not coming together, while consumers are spending a historically low percentage of their income on food, we dare not say as it is: Farmers should be able to make a profit. No profit, no investments in conversion or efficiency improvements. No profit, no competitiveness or generational renewal. Without profit, no security for our farmers. We have a clear task ahead of us to increase the income of agriculture and lower its costs because we need both the spine and the heart. So don't be blind to income, dare to talk about profit and profitability! For money may not grow on trees, but capital will grow on every farm, and that is my vision for European agriculture.

Mr President, in 2015, the Commission launched the plans for the energy union in order to make us more independent from Russian gas. Now, seven years later, we see the results from the major investment in LNG terminals and gas infrastructure and so on. And the result is very clear: at the start of this war, we were more dependent on Russian gas than ever. We import more, we use more gas and we import more gas from Russia. We cannot afford to make the same mistakes again. So my question is to you, Commissioner: how will you make sure we don't repeat our mistakes? How will you make sure that the affordable energy action plan actually phases out gas and Russian gas for good? We cannot afford to make the same mistakes again, and our new plans really need to make sure that we get rid of these dependencies, not dig us deeper into them.

My question is simple: do you want to end the war? Because if you want to end the war, it's quite clear that the more finance, the more euros we put in Putin's pockets, the harder it would be for Ukraine to win. So, sanctioning Russian energy, sanctioning the oil and gas – well, it's the obvious answer. If we want to end the war, we cannot finance a war. So, do you really want to end it?

Mr President, thank you very much. Last year was the warmest year ever recorded. In fact, every year from now on looks to be the warmest year ever. As if that were not enough, today a climate denier is sworn in as president of one of the world's largest countries again. Most recently, he withdrew from the Paris Agreement, and there is no doubt or doubt that he will do so again. The world's most powerful man completely ignores the climate crisis, and even here in Europe we see the same tendencies. Because it sounds so easy to do nothing and pretend that the climate crisis does not exist, but the fact is that it is more expensive to wait. It's harder to do nothing, and it's bigger changes to pretend that the climate crisis and climate change don't exist. We know what we have to do, we have to do it now: Raise the cost of emissions, stop fossil fuels and make it cheaper to choose fossil-free. And above all, we must help to keep the border with the climate deniers.